Developer Built Schools Enhance New Dougherty Valley Communities

Located in the new residential communities of Gale Ranch and Windemere in the Dougherty Valley is a new approach to the lengthy process and high cost of building and funding new schools in California - have the developers finance and construct new schools. Very few schools in California have been built in a collaborative effort between the school district, developer, community, and the state. Because of the eventual construction of more than 11,000 homes in the Dougherty Valley (located in east San Ramon), the San Ramon Valley Unified School District will have seven such developer built schools. Shapell Industries and Windemere BLC (Brookfield, Lennar and Centex) have already completed construction of two new 720-student elementary schools, Coyote Creek and Hidden Hills. The first middle school in the Dougherty Valley, Windemere Ranch Middle School, which is master planned for 900 students, opened August 29, 2005 with 380 6th and 7th graders.

"This is a win-win situation for us and the school district," said Kevin Pohlson, Vice President of Land and Planning representing Windemere BLC. It is exciting for us because we can design the schools to complement the homes around them and the overall feel of the community."

The enormous task of constructing the new Dougherty Valley High School for 2200 students is a priority for the district and developers. Shapell Industries and Windemere BLC are jointly undertaking the Dougherty Valley High School project, located at the corner of Bollinger Canyon and Albion Road. The school is scheduled to open in 2007 with 9th and 10th grade students only.

"The collaborative process that allows residential developers to build public schools works in our district due to a number of factors," according to Margie Brown, Assistant Superintendent of Facilities Development. "The district's Facilities staff oversees the entire process from inception through completion. The District selects a qualified, experienced school architect, ensuring that our educational specifications and equipment/material standards are met through a design committee process. More importantly, during construction, our staff closely monitors the progress and quality of construction, ensuring the school is built to last and opens on time."

In addition to the Dougherty Valley High School, three more schools will open by 2009 - Live Oak Elementary and Gale Ranch Middle School in the Dougherty Valley, and Creekside Elementary to open in 2008 in the Tassajara Valley in the new Alamo Creek development. If all schools are ultimately built out to their master planned capacities, the Dougherty Valley developer built schools could accommodate nearly 8,000 students.